Cost-Buster Cooking: Trifles are a treat dating to Pilgrim times

Now that summer is here Iím all in favor of desserts that donít require turning on the oven, and coupled with that is my eternal desire to use whatever the fruit is thatís coming into season locally. Put...

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By
Ellen Brown
Posted Jun. 25, 2014 @ 12:01 am

Now that summer is here Iím all in favor of desserts that donít require turning on the oven, and coupled with that is my eternal desire to use whatever the fruit is thatís coming into season locally. Put those two together, stir in the need that summer cooking not be fussy, and what you get is a trifle.

This layered combination of chilled mousse or custard, hunks of cake (which can be purchased), and fresh fruit is one of the tastier parts of the countryís English culinary heritage. Recipes for it appear in cookery books just about the time the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock.

And trifles arenít just for the summer. There are some great fall and winter combinations, too. Two of my favorites are gingerbread cubes layered with pumpkin mousse and crunchy pecan praline, or caramelized apple slices with brandied custard sauce and butter cookies. But weíve got all these luscious summer fruits about to come into season, so Iíll focus my trifle combinations on them for the next few months.

Cost-Buster tips

Lemons are getting really expensive. But itís really important to use one real lemon in any recipe calling for a lot of juice so that you can grate off the zest. Itís really necessary to include the zest for an intense lemon flavor.

The easiest way to get the most juice out of lemons is to have the fruit at room temperature and roll it around on a counter a few times before cutting it in half. If you need just a few tablespoons of lemon juice, squeeze the juice through the fingers of your other hand. That way you can catch and discard the seeds and donít have to wash a juicer.

While I rarely peel tomatoes anymore, I do believe that peaches should be peeled before being used for a dessert. The way I now accomplish this task is with a serrated vegetable peeler. It works like a charm. But if you donít have one, hereís the old way: Bring a saucepan of water to a boil and have a bowl of ice water handy. Score the bottom of each peach with an X and plunge the peaches into the boiling water, a few at a time, for 1 minute. Remove them from the water with a slotted spoon and plunge them into ice water until chilled. The skin will slip right off.

Youíll notice that in the recipe for the lemon mousse youíre told to not let the mixture boil or the eggs will scramble, but for the apricot custard the instruction is to simmer the mixture. The difference is that the cornstarch used to make pastry cream blocks the proteins in the egg yolks from bonding to each other and scrambling. The thickness of the cream is really from the eggs, but the cornstarch also adds to the thickness.

Beat the egg yolks with the granulated sugar in a saucepan until thick. Beat in the lemon juice and lemon zest and place the pan over low heat. Heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Remove the pan from the heat, beat in the limoncello, and chill until cold.

Chill a mixing bowl and electric mixer beaters in the freezer. Beat the cream at medium speed until frothy and then at high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold three-quarters of the whipped cream into the custard mixture. Beat the confectionersí sugar and vanilla into the remaining whipped cream.

To assemble, layer cake slices and lemon mousse in a straight-sided glass bowl, dotting each layer with raspberries. Top the last layer with the whipped cream. Chill for up to 3 hours before serving. To serve, insert a spoon vertically into the bowl to give each serving layers of all parts.

Note: The custard can be made up to 1 day in advance and be refrigerated, tightly covered with plastic wrap. Do not whip the cream and fold the mixture longer than 3 hours in advance.

Serves 6 to 8.

Peach Trifle with Apricot Custard

2 1/2 cups whole milk

6 large egg yolks

2/3 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup apricot brandy

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup sour cream

1 (10-ounce) purchased pound cake, cut into slices

4 ripe fresh peaches, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium-high heat until it begins to steam. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a metal mixing bowl until thick and light yellow in color. Beat in the milk in a thin stream, and then return the mixture to the saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Simmer the custard for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the apricot brandy.

Transfer the custard to a mixing bowl and press a sheet of plastic wrap into the surface to keep a skin from forming. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

Chill a mixing bowl and electric mixer beaters in the freezer. Beat the cream at medium speed until frothy and then at high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold the whipped cream and sour cream into the custard mixture.

To assemble, layer cake slices and custard in a straight-sided glass bowl, dotting each layer with peaches. To serve, insert a spoon vertically into the bowl to give each serving layers of all parts.

Note: The custard can be made up to 1 day in advance and refrigerated, tightly covered with plastic wrap.